Jun 20th, 2012 by Jennifer Lynn
I am certainly no stranger to debt and chronicled my financial journey paying off $15,000 worth of debt over at Broke-Ass Student.
Debt can feel suffocating and excruciatingly overwhelming, but now, three years later, I am so proud to have killed off that nasty beast and accumulate a healthy personal savings; in fact, I’d be able to modestly survive for an extended period of time (think, more than a year here) without income, before eating through the bulk of my savings.
So, what has been my secret?
Whenever I encountered money, I saved aggressively and I saved before anything else. I treat all income as spotty, as sporadically pouring in. And I saved my little fanny off.
(My current dilemma, as a stay at home mom, is how to creatively generate further income for savings / investment purposes without dipping into my current nest egg.)
Debt is now the dirty, four-letter word that I avoid like the plague unless it enables income-generating assets, such as income property or a business. A vehicle, unfortunately, does not fall into this category, and yet almost all of my peers and former colleagues are sinking their money into fancy car loans and leases, expensive housing, and glittering trinkets. They are not financially prepared for a catastrophic job loss for a job they believe they will never lose.
The kind that think a house is savings.
The kind that think retirement is for tomorrow, so why worry today?
I’m curious what percentage of Americans struggle to save any portion of their income in 2012.
I can’t help but wonder, how deep in debt denial is our society?
=^..^=
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What I’m currently reading:
Washington Post, June 11, 2012: Americans saw wealth plummet 40 percent from 2007 to 2010, Federal Reserve says.
CNNMoney, May 10, 2012:49% of Americans saving zilch for retirement
